The Author In The Closet
by susanatc
Summary: The Grave Digger returns and has some unfinished business to take care of with Brennan and Booth.
1. Prologue

_For the record, I don't own any of these characters. And I can assure you that my take on the resolution of this storyline varies a whole lot from the actual show. I started this long before "Hero In The Hold" so you won't find any spoilers for that in here. A huge thank you to blc for the idea to start this as well as her input along the way. And thanks to harleygirlz for help along the way as well. This part is just a teaser to see if anyone is interested in reading._

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T: - 00.05.32

Brennan watched the red glow of the numbers on the clock in front of her face. It was slowly ticking down the seconds until her air supply ran out. The bastard had left her nothing this time except for the digital clock that was now serving as a painful reminder of all the things she was leaving unfinished.

As the clock passed below the five minute mark, she closed her eyes against the tears that welled up. An image of Booth instantly filled her mind and she swallowed the anguish that threatened to pull her under. She wouldn't give up hope. She believed in him more than she'd believed in anything in her life, including her science. He would find her. He had to, because she was quite certain that if he didn't, her death would bring about his own. She would hold on for him. She had promised him that the center would hold and she would hold for as long as it took.

XOXOXOXOXO

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If this was video, I'd play the opening credits or something here. As it is, I'll just ask nicely for you to drop me a line and I promise to post the next part shortly.


	2. Chapter 1

_As promised, the next chapter. Please note the time frames in this. I jumped back a day and will work my way back to where we started. This one earned its rating from this chapter so considered yourself warned. _

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The Previous Day

T: - 26:15:32

"We're going to be late," Brennan informed Booth as she swatted his hands away from her waist. She had been putting on her makeup while he showered, but as soon as he'd seen her standing there wearing only her panties and a bra, he had lost interest in actually getting ready for work.

"Then we should just go ahead and play hooky," he offered as his hands returned to her waist and pulled her back against him.

She could feel his erection through the towel he had wrapped around his waist, and she couldn't help the moan that escaped her when his lips landed on her neck and began to suck gently. "Booth, please."

"Please what?" he whispered into her ear before sucking her earlobe into his mouth.

When his hands moved from her waist up to cup her breasts, she sighed and leaned back into him. "Please don't stop," she managed to get out as her eyes drifted shut in pleasure.

He chuckled against her skin, the vibrations raising gooseflesh all over her body. "I don't plan on ever stopping again," he told her as his eyes locked on their reflection in the mirror. "I've waited too long to be able to touch you and show you how I feel."

"You feel amazing," she replied as she shifted her hips against his, rubbing her ass against his hardness.

"Are you wet for me, baby?" he asked as he trailed a hand from her breast down across her stomach. When he reached the edge of her panties, he stopped and waited for her eyes to open.

Meeting his questioning gaze in the mirror, she realized that he was waiting for her response. She smiled as she dropped her gaze to watch as her hand covered his. "Only for you, Booth," she told him.

He watched their reflection as she guided their hands inside her panties until he could feel her arousal on his fingertips. "This is what you do to me, Booth," she said as she rocked her hips forward to meet his hand. "I can't get enough of you."

He groaned then, his fingers sliding into her heat. "You are so amazing, Bones."

She couldn't tear her eyes away from their reflection. It was incredibly erotic, watching him pleasure her.

"Take them off," he murmured against her neck.

Her eyes darted up to meet his in the mirror, seeing the desire reflected there. She quickly complied, her hands moving to push her panties off her hips until she finally kicked them away.

"The bra, too," he ordered as his fingers continued to thrust into her.

She leaned forward far enough to unhook the clasp of her bra then let it slide down her arms and drop carelessly to the floor. As she leaned back against him, her hands found the knot holding the towel around his hips and made quick work of it also.

His free hand once again found her breast, his fingers toying with a hardened nipple before moving over to offer the other one equal attention as she moaned her appreciation.

When her hand reached between them to wrap around his length, he said, "You are so incredibly sexy, Bones." The words rushing past her ear as he bucked against her hand.

She watched his hands in the mirror, one of them molding her breasts while the other continued to stroke her intimately. "You make me feel sexy, Booth," she told him as she slowly slid her hand up and down his length. It was true, too. Every time he looked at her with that twinkle in his eye, she felt like the sexiest woman on the planet.

"Touch yourself for me," he asked as he shifted his weight slightly behind her.

Her eyes shot up to meet his even as she moved her hand to comply. She followed his gaze in the mirror as he watched her fingers slip between her legs to find her clitoris. He increased the speed of his thrusts within her as she slowly circled her clit with her fingers. "Faster," he encouraged her. "I want to watch you come."

She did as he asked, her fingers moving to match the pace he set. She was already hovering on the edge of her climax and the added stimulation from her own fingers sent her crashing over the precipice within seconds.

She was still gasping his name when he lifted her into his arms and carried her to the bed. His lips crashed down on hers as he slid into her welcoming depths and settled into a rhythm. She wrapped her arms and legs around him and pulled him deeper until he finally lost control and spasmed inside of her. When he collapsed on top of her, she held him tightly to her chest, her hands stroking every part of him she could reach.

It was several minutes before he finally rolled to his side, pulling her with him, his arms hugging her as he planted gentle kisses to her forehead. "I love you, Bones."

"I love you, too," she replied, her lips finding his chest and placing kisses across it.

"We're definitely going to be late," he said with a smile as he traced a hand down one smooth shoulder.

She chuckled as she lifted her gaze to his. "Totally not my fault."

"You sure aren't going to blame it on me that you're so damn irresistible, are you?" he asked.

"Absolutely," she replied. "I took the weekend off from work to finish my book. You're the one who followed me to the hotel and insisted that we act out every racy scene in the book."

"All I said was that you should put a little more research into those scenes to make sure they were all plausible," he countered.

"Sure, Booth," she replied. She then leaned up to kiss him again, her tongue tracing his lips before withdrawing back into her own mouth.

When he tried to deepen the kiss, she rolled away from him and climbed out of the bed. "Come on, Booth," she said as she headed back to the bathroom. "We've got to get to work."

XOXOXOXOXO

Brennan checked her reflection in the mirror again and sighed. "I cannot believe you left a hickey on my neck," she said as she turned to face Booth.

He offered her a sheepish smile as he walked over to stand in front of her. "I'm sorry, Bones. I didn't do it on purpose."

She narrowed her eyes at that. "Perhaps on a sub-conscious level you were giving in to your alpha male tendencies and marking your territory."

He laughed and reached out to place his hands on her shoulders. "If that's the case, there are a lot of other places I need to mark before we leave."

"There are a lot of other places that nobody else is going to see except you," she reminded him. "Those would be okay to mark. But this will take Angela approximately ten seconds to notice and then she's going to give me the third degree. She already thinks I'm keeping something from her."

He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her into a hug. "As soon as my meeting is finished this morning, I will head over to the lab and we can let everyone else in on it," he promised.

"And in the mean time?" she asked as she returned his embrace.

He looked over at the bed where her suitcase was still lying open. "How about your red scarf?" he suggested. "It will hide the hickey and will look good with your outfit, too."

Brennan sighed again and stepped out of his embrace. She pulled the scarf from her suitcase and wrapped it around her neck, tying the ends into a loose knot. Checking her reflection again, she nodded. "I guess this will have to do."

Booth walked up behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist. Resting his chin on her shoulder, he met her gaze in the mirror. "I promise to be more careful in the future."

She leaned into him and offered him a smile. "In the future, there won't be a need to be careful. Heck, there wouldn't be a need today if I hadn't insisted on keeping our relationship quiet until we were sure of our footing."

"It doesn't matter," he assured her. "We're on solid ground now and that's all that matters. Our friends are just going to have to deal with the fact that we've kept them in the dark."

"And I did use the weekend to finish my book," she said as she turned in his embrace. "In spite of all of your interruptions."

"Did you e-mail it to your publisher?" he asked.

"While you were shaving," she replied. "Now we can relax and enjoy a couple of months with no deadline looming over my head."

Booth glanced at his watch then and said, "Speaking of deadlines, my meeting with Cullen starts in thirty minutes."

"Go," she said as she pushed gently against his chest.

"I'll walk you to your car," he replied as he released her.

"It's in the underground garage," she reminded him. "Yours is in the lot outside the front doors. It is definitely not on the way. Go on. Get your bag and get going. I'll see you around lunch time."

He didn't like it, but she was right. He was already pushing his luck to make it to the office without having to use his siren. He zipped up his duffel bag and quickly glanced around the room to make sure he hadn't forgotten anything.

Satisfied that everything was in order, he slung his bag over his shoulder and walked to the other side of the bed where Brennan had just finished closing her suitcase. He lifted it from the bed and sat it on its wheels by the door before walking back over for a lingering kiss.

When he reluctantly pulled away, she smiled up at him. "I love you, Booth."

"I love you, too," he replied. "I'll call when I'm out of my meeting."

He leaned down for one more kiss and then turned and headed out the door. Brennan couldn't help but smile as she gathered her laptop and purse and sat them on the bed as she turned her phone back on. It had been a wonderful weekend.

She listened to her voicemails, both of them from her publisher, and then tucked her phone into her pocket along with her keys. Grabbing both her purse and laptop, she slung the straps over her shoulder and walked over to grab her suitcase as well.

She headed to the elevator and pressed the call button, deciding to load her suitcase into the car and then return to the lobby to check out of the room. As she stepped onto the elevator, she pulled out her cell phone and sent a text to her publisher, telling her to check her e-mail for the final chapters of the latest book.

Once that was done, she tucked her phone back into her pocket and leaned back against the wall. Her hand reached up to her neck, finding the spot where Booth had left a mark and smiling in spite of herself. She would never admit it out loud, but she liked having his mark on her.

She was still smiling when she stepped out of the elevator into the garage. She headed to her car, pulling her keys out of her pocket on the way. Pressing the button to open the trunk, she loaded her suitcase into it and then added her laptop as well.

She slammed the trunk and turned to head back to the elevator when she heard footsteps approaching. She quickly turned but before she could react and register the fact that she was in danger, she was incapacitated.

Her attacker looked down to where she had crumpled to the ground when he had placed the taser to her neck and grinned. "I won't be cheated this time, Dr. Brennan."

XOXOXOXOXO

T: - 24:01:15

Booth flashed a smile at Cullen's secretary as he entered the office. "Good morning, Nancy."

"Good morning, Agent Booth," she replied. "He said for you to go on in when you got here."

"Thank you," Booth said as he gave her another smile.

"Oh, this was couriered over for you," she said as she held out a manila envelope.

Booth's eyebrows rose and he felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand on edge as he saw his name written in bold letters across the front of the envelope. He held out the stack of folders he was carrying and she sat it on top.

"Thank you, Nancy," he said casually, even as his stomach churned. He opened the door to Cullen's office and stepped inside, making sure the door closed behind him before he spoke. "Do you have gloves, Sir?"

Cullen opened a drawer and handed him a pair of gloves, then cleared a spot on his desk when Booth held up the envelope. Booth opened it and carefully dumped the contents on the desk. His heart skipped a beat when he recognized Brennan's cell phone as well as the scarf she'd tied around her neck less than thirty minutes ago to hide the hickey he'd left.

Before he could do anything else, his cell phone rang. Noticing that the caller id showed a private number, he swallowed the fear rising in him and answered the call with dread. "Booth."

"Five million dollars," the distorted voice told him. "The account number is in the package. You have twenty-four hours."

"I _will_ kill you," Booth stated even as a cold chill made its way up his spine.

"Not before I kill her," he replied. "I won't be cheated this time. Clock's ticking, Agent Booth."

The line went dead and Booth let out a string of curses, momentarily forgetting that he was standing in his boss's office.

"What are we dealing with, Booth?" Cullen asked.

"The Grave Digger," Booth replied. "And he's got Bones."

"How much and how long?" Cullen asked.

"Five million dollars in twenty-four hours."

"Whatever you need, Booth," Cullen assured him.

"Thank you, Sir."

XOXOXOXOXO

T: -23:15:20

"Everything went as planned?"

"Like clockwork. I appreciate the information you provided."

"It was the least I could do considering all that you've done for me."

"This time will be different."

"You expect the ransom to be paid this time?"

"I expect her not to be able to assist in her own rescue this time. Yes, things will definitely be different this time."

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Please be so kind as to drop me a note and let me know what you think about this. It's so much more fun to write when you know others are reading and enjoying.


	3. Chapter 2

_Thank you to everyone who took the time to write a review. I appreciate each and every one of them._

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T: - 22:45:50

Booth strode into the Jeffersonian with fire in his eyes. "Please tell me we've got something useful," he said as he made his way up to the platform.

"The only fingerprints on the envelope are the courier's and Nancy's," Cam told him.

"Anything else?" he asked, turning his attention to Hodgins.

"Not on the envelope, but I'm still analyzing the contents," he replied.

"Booth, are you sure he's not just playing games with you?" Angela asked. "Bren told us that she would probably be in late today because she was going to spend the weekend finishing her book. How do you even know this is her stuff?"

Booth ran a frustrated hand through his hair. "It's her stuff, Angela."

"Are you sure, Booth?" Cam asked as she walked over to stand next to him.

"Yes, I'm sure," he said, his voice rising with his anger. "It's the same damn scarf I picked out for her this morning." He let out a heavy sigh and then met Angela's gaze. "She didn't want you questioning the hickey I'd left on her neck so I told her to wear the scarf until we could explain things together."

The group on the platform fell silent, each one processing the information as he continued. "She really did spend the weekend working on her book. I just crashed the party to keep her company while she did so. We've been together for a couple of months now and she wanted to keep things quiet until we were sure of our footing. We had planned on telling you all later today."

Angela was the first to recover, and a smile broke out on her face in spite of the situation. "I am so happy for you guys," she said as she wrapped her arms around Booth and hugged him.

He returned the hug half-heartedly. "Please, Ang. I can't lose her."

"Lose who?" a voice called from the floor below.

Booth turned to see Max looking up at him expectantly and he took a deep breath before he made his way down the steps.

"Max, what are you doing here?" Booth asked.

"Getting ready for my next class," he replied. "What's going on?"

"She's been kidnapped, Max."

The older man's eyes narrowed, but he gave no other visible reaction to the news. "When? By whom?" he asked.

Booth shook his head. "No, Max. You are not getting involved in this."

"She's my daughter, Booth. I'm involved whether you like it or not."

Booth lowered his voice as he glanced around and noticed several people watching them. "I'm not going to have this conversation with you out here, Max."

Max nodded his head in acknowledgement and Booth headed towards one of the conference rooms. Max followed him quietly, neither one of them speaking again until Booth closed the door securely behind them.

Booth then quickly relayed what little information they had. "I left the hotel at 8:30 this morning and she was on her way out directly behind me. I got a package at my office at 9:00 with her cell phone and one of her scarves in it as well as a bank account number. I got a phone call shortly after that telling me he wanted five million dollars within twenty-four hours or she was dead."

"The same bastard as before?" he asked.

"Yes," Booth replied. "He told me that he wouldn't be cheated this time."

"What do we do next?" Max asked.

"Officially, you do nothing," Booth replied.

"Understood," Max agreed as he glanced around the room, noticing that they had already set it up as a central location for all of the evidence in the Grave Digger cases. "I have officially never stepped foot into this room. We have officially never had this conversation. And I am officially taking a couple of personal days from my job here at the Jeffersonian."

Booth let out a deep breath as Max turned his attention back to him. "Promise me that I'm not going to regret this decision."

Max's eyes flashed. "You're not the only one who loves her, Booth."

"I know," he conceded. "But she'll never forgive either one of us if I let you do something that's going to take you away from her again."

"I give you my word, Booth."

Booth nodded his head. "Okay then. I've got someone I want you to tail. He's a former agent who has made millions off his book about the Grave Digger. Don't engage him under any circumstances. Just follow him and see where he goes and who he talks to. My gut tells me that he's a very important person of interest but I have nothing to substantiate that with so I can't do this through proper channels. Besides, he'd spot an agent a mile away."

"Understood," Max replied. "Who is it?"

"Thomas Vega," Booth replied. "I'll text his address to your phone." Booth glanced around the room again and his eyes settled on a box of latex gloves. He waited until Max's gaze followed his and then he spoke again. "Ten minutes."

Max nodded. "Done."

"Check in every hour," Booth told him as he headed for the door.

"We'll catch him, Booth."

"I'm counting on that," Booth replied. He then opened the door and stepped out, pulling it firmly shut behind him.

Bones would absolutely kill him if this blew up in his face. Especially after he'd convinced her to let Max stay on at the Jeffersonian. Letting out a deep breath, he made his way back out to the platform. Before he reached the steps, Cam's voice reached him. "Where's Max?"

"I convinced him to take a couple of personal days so we wouldn't be butting heads every step of the way," Booth replied. He stopped in his tracks when he looked up and found Hodgins, Angela and Cam all looking at him expectantly.

"But he can go places we can't," Cam stated.

"And he helped Bren find you when you'd been kidnapped," Angela added.

Hodgins met his gaze head on. "It will take all of us, Booth."

Booth nodded his head in agreement. "I'm not arguing that," he said. "But he's an acquitted murderer. We can't exactly give him free reign on a federal investigation, can we?" When they continued to just stare at him, he added, "Besides that, Bones would kill me if I let her dad near the forensic evidence."

The three of them just continued to stare at him so he swiped his card and joined them on the platform. "Trust me on this one, please."

The three of them glanced at each other and then all met his gaze again. "Okay," Cam said, speaking for them all.

"Thank you," Booth replied. "Now, any luck with the contents of the envelope?"

Within seconds, they were once again working on the evidence and Booth let out a relieved sigh that they were no longer pressing him on the issue. When he saw Max slip out of the conference room, he excused himself from the platform long enough to look up Vega's address and send it to him. If this blew up in his face, his career was over. It wouldn't matter if they didn't find her though. Nothing would. Failure wasn't an option.

XOXOXOXOXO

T: - 22:02:56

Brennan slowly regained consciousness, the pounding in her head intensifying when she tried to move her neck. She clamped down on her desire to move and carefully opened her eyes. She was surrounded by darkness, the only light appearing to be a red glow of some sort. Closing her eyes again, she did a quick inventory and decided that other than the headache and disorientation, she was no worse for wear.

She forced her eyes open again to try to get a better understanding of her surroundings. She was on her side on what felt like wood, and there appeared to be a wall at her back. Ignoring her headache, she pushed herself to a sitting position. The red glow was directly in front of her so she rolled to her knees and crawled towards it.

When she reached the glow, she reached out a tentative hand which brushed against a small, solid object. Wrapping her hand securely around it, she picked it up and turned it so she could see the glowing numbers. It was a digital clock that was counting backwards. As she watched, the numbers switched to 21:59:00 and the realization settled deep into the pit of her stomach that the Grave Digger had taken her again and she was watching the clock count down how long she had left to live.

XOXOXOXOXO

T: - 21:58:17

"Booth," Cam said as she entered the conference room. "They just dropped off her car downstairs."

"Thanks, Cam," he replied. "I want Hodgins to supervise the FBI forensics guys as they go over it. I don't want anything missed."

"He's already down there," she informed him. "And the courier is on the way from the hotel with the security tapes. Angela already has Dr. Brennan's photo loaded so she can do a quick scan with the recognition software."

"Okay, thanks."

"Have you talked to the courier who delivered the package to Nancy?"

"Cullen did. The kid got a text message to pick up a package at the hotel front desk. There was an envelope with the package with a hundred dollar tip in it. The envelope and bill were clean for prints other than his, and his prints were a match to the ones on the envelope he delivered for me."

"Any luck with tracking the text message?"

"A disposable cell paid for with cash at a gas station fifty miles outside of D.C. with no working security cameras," he replied. "And no idea how he got the kid's work cell number other than perhaps hacking into the company's database. I've got people looking for that angle right now."

Cam sighed and stepped fully into the office, closing the door firmly behind her. "What's your gut telling you?"

"The same thing it was telling me two years ago," he replied. "That Thomas Vega is into this up to his neck."

"And that's why you have Max tailing him?" Cam asked.

Booth glanced up at her and shook his head. "Max is taking a personal day, Cam. What he does on his own time is none of my business as long as he isn't breaking the law."

Cam nodded in understanding. "Okay then, I'll be in touch when we find something."

"Thanks, Cam."

XOXOXOXOXO

T: - 20:30:16

Brennan had used the clock as a makeshift flashlight to inspect the area where she was being held. It was a container of approximately eight feet by eight feet with a ceiling of approximately eight feet as well. Along with the light from the clock, she had trailed her hands along every square inch but hadn't found any type of door. The only entrance she had found was on the ceiling – an opening directly in the center of the room, but no handle anywhere to be seen. She had jumped up and pushed against it, but it hadn't budged, and the movement had increased the pounding in her head.

After inspecting the walls, she had gotten on her hands and knees and inspected every inch of the floor in the hopes that her abductor had left something behind that she could use to help her escape. When her search had turned up nothing, she'd moved to one corner of the room and sat back against the wall.

She closed her eyes and forced herself to remain calm. Booth would find her. He had to. They had too much to look forward to for things to end like this.

XOXOXOXOXO

T: - 18:57:13

"What is all of this?" Cam asked as she walked into Angela's office and looked around at the boxes sitting there.

"Booth brought over the surveillance footage from Brennan's apartment as well as from our parking garage here. He also brought DMV photos of everyone who lives in her building and works here. He's hoping this guy has been following her for a while and that we'll catch a break and catch him on video."

"Anything so far?" Cam asked.

"The hotel footage was a bust. We were able to track her as far as the elevator, but that's it. There is no sign of her once she got on the elevator on her floor, but the elevator didn't stop until it reached the garage. Of course, the camera in the garage was disabled around two a.m. so Booth has someone covering that angle. He also has someone checking the plates of every car that left the garage after 8:30 this morning, but that could take a while."

"Did Hodgins find anything useful in her car?" Cam asked.

"Her suitcase and laptop were in the trunk, so we know she at least made it to her car, since Booth confirmed she had them with her when he left her this morning."

"So she took her luggage to the car and probably headed back inside to check out, only never made it?"

"That's our working theory right now, yes," Angela replied. "Has Booth made any headway with getting the ransom together?"

"He was on his way to meet with her publisher the last time I talked to him," Cam replied. "I haven't heard back from him yet."

Angela sighed as she loaded another disc into her computer. "I hate this."

"Me, too," Cam agreed. "Keep me posted on what you find. I'm going to go check in with Hodgins and give Booth a call."

XOXOXOXOXO

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Please drop me a line. I'd love to hear from you.


	4. Chapter 3

_This part isn't real long, but I figured better a short chapter than none at all. _

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T: - 17:37:44

Booth made his way into the Jeffersonian while talking to Cullen on his cell phone. "Any luck tracing the account numbers?"

"Not yet, but I've got three of our best agents working on it," Cullen replied. "What did Dr. Brennan's publisher say?"

"They're getting the money together," Booth replied. "Their accountant is going to call me when everything is in place and hopefully we'll have a lead by then and won't need to use it."

"You know the FBI's official policy on paying ransoms," Cullen reminded him.

"I know," Booth replied. "And I told her publisher exactly what I'm supposed to say."

"And then?" Cullen asked.

"Then I answered their questions," Booth replied. He might be willing to break every single rule ever created, but he sure wasn't going to drag his friends with him. Plausible deniability on all fronts as far as he was concerned.

Cullen accepted the answer and changed the subject. "What about Vega?"

Booth ran a hand through his hair. "My sources tell me that he's under surveillance but that so far, he's only met up with Janine. However, one of the waiters at the restaurant where they met overheard part of their conversation and they were definitely talking about money transfers."

"Which could be as simple as his advance for a new book," Cullen pointed out.

"I know," Booth replied. "But I still think he's involved in this somehow. I'm keeping an unofficial eye on him for now."

"Check in with me in an hour, Booth," Cullen told him. "Hopefully, one of us will have something useful by then."

"Yes, sir." Booth disconnected the call and tucked his phone into his pocket as he swiped his card to approach the platform. "Anything yet?" he asked Hodgins.

"There's a scratch on the side of Dr. Brennan's car," Hodgins replied. "I'm not positive yet, but it looks like it was made by a fingernail."

"Hers?" Booth asked as he walked over to stand behind Hodgins as he stared into a microscope.

"No way to tell that," Hodgins replied. "But other than that, the car was pretty much a bust. However, your tech guys found a very interesting dirt particle next to her car in the garage."

"Interesting enough to tell me where she is?" Booth asked.

Hodgins shook his head and turned to face him. "No, sorry. But it's interesting enough that if you find the shoes the bastard was wearing when he took her, I'll be able to place him at the crime scene."

"Thanks, Hodgins," Booth said. "Is Angela in her office?"

"Yeah," he replied. "She's still looking at videos."

Booth made his way back off the platform and headed to Angela's office. She glanced up when he entered and flashed him a smile. "I'm not sure yet if it means anything, but I've got a car on camera a couple of different times that doesn't fit."

"Show me," Booth said as he walked over to stand behind her.

Angela cued up the footage as she explained. "This is from the garage here at the Jeffersonian," she told him. "It's from two weeks ago." She keyed a couple more strokes and said, "This is from outside Bren's apartment the same night."

"It's the same car," Booth stated. "Can you zoom in on the plates?"

"No plates on it," Angela replied. "I printed off stills for you. I thought you could have Charlie run the make and model and see if you get anything interesting from that."

Booth took the photos she held out to him and then leaned down to brush a kiss to her cheek. "Thank you, Angela."

"I'll keep digging through this stuff," she told him. "You go follow that lead."

He was already on his way out the door, his cell phone in hand as he chased down the first solid lead they'd had yet.

XOXOXOXOXO

T: - 16:43:34

Brennan closed her eyes and leaned her head against the wall to block out the annoying glow of the clock. She had exhausted herself trying to get the opening in the ceiling to budge, and had still had no luck. She took a deep, calming breath and opened her eyes again. It appeared as if there was absolutely nothing she could do this time to help Booth find her. The irony of her complete dependence on him wasn't lost on her. It was the last issue she'd had to work through before they crossed the line from partners to lovers.

A smile crossed her face as she thought back to those first few dates. Surprisingly enough, it had been Parker's insistence on hanging mistletoe in Booth's entryway that had been the catalyst that forced them to re-evaluate their relationship. His innocent insistence that his father kiss her under the mistletoe when she joined them for dinner on Christmas Eve had opened a can of worms that neither one of them really wanted to put the lid back on. Long after Parker had been tucked into bed, the two of them had been entwined on his couch talking and kissing and then kissing and talking some more. It had been, by far, the best Christmas of her adult life.

When she'd tried to leave, insisting that he and Parker should get to spend Christmas morning alone together, Booth had threatened to wake Parker and ask his opinion. Afraid that he would actually follow through with it, she acquiesced and agreed to spend the night. He had loaned her a pair of his flannel pajamas and they had spent the rest of the night curled up on the couch together. Parker's excited yelps had awaken her long before the sun had even thought about rising and his excitement had been contagious as he'd torn into the gifts Santa had left for him.

She had enjoyed spending the morning with them, and would have accepted Parker's invitation to stay for the entire day if she hadn't already committed to joining her family for Christmas dinner. As she prepared to leave, Parker had tugged her down to his level and kissed her, then giggled and ran back into the living room as Booth once again pointed out the mistletoe hanging over her head. She had taken advantage of it and pulled Booth into a breathtaking kiss before heading out.

Brennan shook her head to clear the memories and sighed heavily. "Oh, Booth. I don't want this to be over before we really even got started. I believe in you."

XOXOXOXOXO

T: - 15:00:24

Sweets walked into the lab and looked around for Booth. When he didn't see him, he made his way to Cam's office. "Dr. Saroyan, do you know where I might find Agent Booth?"

"He hasn't made it back yet, Dr. Sweets," she said as she looked up from her microscope. "Everything is in the conference room if you'd like to go ahead and take a look at it. Booth told me you would be coming by to help with a possible profile."

"Have there been any leads?" Sweets asked.

"Nothing of any use," Booth said as he walked into the room.

"No luck with the car?" Cam asked him.

Booth shook his head. "It belongs to one of her graduate students. When Bones heard that he was looking for a new place, she told him that there was a tenant in her apartment complex looking to sublease. He told me his plates had been stolen last week while he was on campus and he'd filed a report but hadn't been able to get to the DMV to get new ones yet."

Cam shook her head. "I'm sorry, Booth."

Booth merely shrugged. "Are Hodgins and Angela looking over the evidence from the previous Grave Digger cases?"

"Yes," she replied. "They're working in the conference room."

"Thanks, Cam," Booth said. Turning his attention to Sweets, he motioned him out the door. "Thanks for coming by, Sweets."

"You're welcome, Agent Booth."

"This guy doesn't fit the normal profile, Sweets," Booth said as they walked across the lab. "He never makes second contact with the families. No negotiations. No discernible pattern to how he chooses his victims. And so far, none of the survivors have any recollection of the actual abduction."

"It sounds like he knows SOP for hostage negotiations," Sweets commented.

"Personally, I think he's former law enforcement," Booth stated.

Sweets looked at him thoughtfully as they reached the conference room door. "You have a suspect, don't you?"

Booth shook his head with a sarcastic laugh. "No, Sweets. I have suspicions. Nothing I can prove and nothing I can take to Caroline to get a warrant."

"Do you want to share those suspicions?" Sweets asked.

"Not until you've looked at everything first," Booth replied. "I don't want to cloud your judgment."

As the two of them entered the room, Hodgins and Angela looked up expectantly. "Sorry, guys. The car was a dead end."

"I'm sorry, sweetie," Angela said.

"Thanks," Booth replied. "Have you guys come up with anything?"

"More of the same," Hodgins replied.

"What kind of order is this in?" Sweets asked as he glanced around the room.

"The white board is our current timeline and leads," Booth replied.

"Everything else is laid out chronologically," Angela added. "The first known Grave Digger case is to your left. They go clockwise around the room from there."

"How many since he took Dr. Brennan last time?" Sweets asked.

"Six," Booth replied with a sigh. "All of the families paid the ransom and all of the victims were returned unharmed."

"An acceleration?" Sweets asked.

"It would appear that way," Booth replied.

"Perhaps he was frustrated that Dr. Brennan and Dr. Hodgins were able to foil his plans," Sweets hypothesized. "In an effort to prove to himself that he was still in control, he struck more quickly than usual."

Booth watched as Sweets looked over the evidence from the most recent kidnappings. "It's possible, Sweets. But we weren't involved in any of those cases, so all we have to work with are case files and physical evidence."

Sweets grew silent as he picked up one of the case files and glanced through it. Booth took the opportunity to walk over to where Hodgins was sorting through evidence bags. "What are you looking for?" Booth asked him.

"The bumper sticker Dr. Brennan pulled out of my leg before she cut me open," Hodgins replied. "Angela was going to enlarge it and then compare it with the stills from the cars leaving the hotel garage."

"Do you think it will help?" Booth asked as he looked at Angela.

"It beats sitting on my thumbs," she replied.

"Here it is," Hodgins said as he held up the evidence bag.

Angela took the evidence bag from him and headed for the door. "I'll let you know if I find anything."

Booth sat down in the seat next to Hodgins and watched as Sweets continued to look over evidence. Hodgins turned to look at him and nodded towards Sweets. "Does he know?"

Booth shook his head. "I haven't really had a chance to fill in all the blanks yet."

Hodgins lifted an evidence bag and showed it to Booth. "Did she ever tell you about this?"

Booth took the bag that held a torn page from a book in it. "What is this?"

"I suggested that she might want to say goodbye in case we didn't make it," Hodgins replied.

Booth glanced at the paper and had to fight back tears. "Even back then?" he asked.

"I told her she had faith in you," Hodgins replied. "I think she was just beginning to realize for herself that it was much more than just faith."

Booth closed his eyes and sighed. "I was such a fool."

"'Was' being the key word there, Booth," Hodgins pointed out. "You can't drive yourself crazy with what-ifs. There's no life in that."

Booth opened his eyes and looked over at Hodgins. "Thanks, man."

Hodgins merely nodded as they both turned their attention back to Sweets. He stopped when he reached the table they were seated at. "Definitely law enforcement," Sweets said as he met Booth's eyes. "Probably someone without a high success rate. Male, mid to late thirties. Enjoys attention and loves to be in control. In spite of the obvious appearance of detachment from his victims, he probably watches from a distance to see how things play out for the families."

Booth's cell phone buzzed and he reached for it, seeing Max's number on the display. "Hold on just a second, Sweets," he said. He then stepped out into the hall before he answered the phone. "What do you have for me, Max?"

"Vega just pulled into the parking garage at the Jeffersonian," Max replied.

"Thanks, Max," Booth replied. "Wait for him to leave and then pick up the tail again."

"I've got a friend checking his place while he's out," Max replied.

Booth groaned. "Max!"

"Settle down, Booth," Max replied. "Your best forensics team won't be able to tell he was there. He's just taking a look around to see if there's anything suspicious."

"We didn't have this conversation, Max," Booth replied.

"Understood," Max replied. "I'll be in touch."

Booth disconnected the call and then stepped back into the conference room. He looked back to Sweets with a nod. "I'm sorry, please finish."

Sweets raised an eyebrow in question, but continued with his train of thought. "He probably watches from a distance," Sweets continued. "He could even be respected as an expert in the field and called in to consult on the case."

"And if he's not, do you think he might volunteer to help?" Booth offered.

"It's possible," Sweets replied, growing thoughtful for a moment. "But it could turn suspicions toward him unless he had a legitimate cover story already in place."

Booth looked over at Hodgins as a knock sounded at the conference room door. "Come in," Booth called.

One of the security guards stuck his head in the door. "Agent Booth, there's a Thomas Vega here to see you. He said it's in regards to the Grave Digger."

"Thanks Grainger," Booth replied. "Would you mind escorting him upstairs and waiting with him until I get there?"

Grainger smiled and nodded, understanding the implied order to guard the man. "Yes, Sir."

Once the door was closed, Booth turned his attention back to Sweets. "How about a former FBI agent turned K&R specialist who has made a fortune on his books based upon the Grave Digger?"

"Really?" Sweets asked. "That would be the perfect cover. He would be considered the leading authority on how the suspect acts and would therefore be called in to consult on any case bearing a similar m.o."

Booth got to his feet. "My thoughts exactly, Sweets. Would you like to go meet Vega? It should be interesting to hear how he came about knowledge of Bones' disappearance. I gave very explicit instructions that he was not to be contacted by anyone in the bureau or Bones' publishing agency. I know nobody here would have contacted him and so far, we've managed to keep it out of the press."

"He's your suspect, isn't he?" Sweets asked.

"I told you that I don't have a suspect," Booth replied as he headed to the door. "Only suspicions."

"And your suspicions are generally right on target," Sweets pointed out.

"We'll see," Booth replied. "Let's go."

XOXOXOXOXO


	5. Chapter 4

_Not sure what was going on with the site , but now that it's working again, here's the next chapter. Thanks to those of you who have taken the time to write a review. I appreciate them._

* * *

Booth nodded to the security guard as he and Sweets stepped into the lounge. "Thank you, Grainger."

"No problem, Sir," he replied. "I'll be downstairs if you need anything."

Booth nodded in acknowledgement and they walked over to Vega. "Vega, what are you doing here?"

Vega looked between him and Sweets before he got to his feet. "I came to see if I could be of any assistance to you, Agent Booth."

Booth narrowed his eyes and stepped into the man's personal space. "What makes you think you could ever be of assistance to me, Vega?"

Vega took a step back, remembering vividly how he'd felt when Booth's hand had clamped around his windpipe and slammed him onto the table in his office. He glanced past Booth to Sweets and then quickly returned his attention to the fuming agent standing in front of him.

"I heard about Dr. Brennan," Vega replied cautiously. "I thought there might be something I could do to help."

"What about Dr. Brennan?" Sweets asked as he stepped closer to the pair.

When Vega's eyes darted to Sweets again, Booth introduced him, "Vega, my colleague, Dr. Sweets."

Vega glanced nervously between the two men and shrugged non-committedly as he took another small step away from Booth. "I have a contact in the bureau who notifies me any time there is a kidnapping that could possibly be associated with the Grave Digger. I was told that Dr. Brennan had been taken."

Booth narrowed his eyes and stepped forward, once again invading the man's personal space. "This is an FBI matter, Vega."

"Agent Booth, you know that I'm considered an authority on the Grave Digger…"

Booth leaned forward until he was breathing directly in Vega's face as he cut him off. "What I know, Vega, is that my partner has been kidnapped. I also know that I _will_ find the person responsible and anyone else who has helped him in any way and I will _personally_ bring them to justice. Since you were of absolutely no use to me last time, I suggest that you go home and type up your notes and stay as far away from this investigation as possible."

Vega glared at him for a long moment and then turned his attention to Sweets. "Perhaps you can talk some sense into him, Dr. Sweets. I know how the Grave Digger operates. If he expects to have any chance of finding Dr. Brennan alive, he has to play by the Grave Digger's rules." Vega pulled a card from his pocket and handed it to Sweets as he stepped around Booth. "Here's my number when he changes his mind."

"I won't change my mind," Booth stated as Vega reached the stairs. "And I don't make idle threats either."

Vega paused and turned around to meet his gaze, knowing that he wasn't the only one who remembered what it felt like to have Booth's hand wrapped around his windpipe. He should not have let Janine talk him into this. Seeing the fury in Booth's eyes, he merely shook his head and headed down the stairs.

Sweets glanced down at the card in his hand and then looked back at Booth with a raised eyebrow. "I sense a history between the two of you."

Booth rolled his shoulders and walked over to the railing to watch as Grainger escorted Vega out of the lab. "I just can't shake the feeling that he's involved in this," Booth admitted. "And I don't like being played."

Sweets nodded and walked over to join him. "So are you going to fill me in on the rest of what I need to know?"

Booth looked over at him and gave a sarcastic chuckle. "If you're asking how long Bones and I have been lovers, it's been a couple of months now."

"I would've guessed sometime after Christmas," Sweets stated. When Booth gave him a questioning glance, Sweets elaborated. "There was a very subtle change to the undercurrent flowing between you two around that time. At first I thought it was just a concentrated effort to join forces against me, but there was a lot less arguing and nit picking and while I had no proof, I definitely had my suspicions."

"Bones wanted to keep things quiet until we were sure it wasn't going to blow up in our faces," Booth told him.

"I can understand that," Sweets replied. "Especially considering the restraints of your working relationship."

"So where do we go now, Sweets?" Booth asked.

"Can you get your hands on Vega's service record so I can have a look at it?" Sweets asked.

"Yeah, I'll get Charlie to bring it over," Booth replied.

"Do you mind if I ask what your game plan is as far as the ransom?" Sweets asked.

Booth ran a hand through his hair and let out a tired sigh. "Her publisher is prepared to pay the full amount if we haven't located her by dawn."

"Are you certain he'll send you her location?" Sweets asked.

"If he follows his pattern, yes," Booth replied. "But I can't help but think this is more personal than his usual victims."

"Because this is the second time he took her?" Sweets asked.

Booth nodded. "He had to follow her, Sweets. Even _I_ didn't know what hotel she was planning on hiding out at for the weekend. If she had truly wanted to spend the weekend alone, she would've told me that and I wouldn't have joined her. It was a break in her regular routine. It's not like he grabbed her here in the parking garage this time. This guy went to the effort to disable the security camera in the hotel garage. Not only that, but he broke his pattern by sending me a package containing her phone and the scarf she was wearing when I left her. I don't know what to think about that. If we pay the ransom, are we just signing her death warrant?"

"I wish I could answer that," Sweets replied.

Booth drew a deep breath and straightened up. "Time to get back to work. I'll call Charlie and have him get that file over to you ASAP."

"I'll keep looking at the other evidence for now," Sweets offered. "Perhaps there's some kind of pattern we can use to our advantage."

"Thanks, Sweets."

XOXOXOXOXO

Booth walked slowly into Brennan's office as he talked on his cell phone. Sweets had returned to the conference room and he called Charlie to get Vega's service record brought over. As soon as he'd finished talking to Charlie, he called Caroline Julian to request a subpoena on Vega's phone records.

"Caroline, I don't care what you have to tell the judge, just get me the warrant. Vega says he was contacted by someone within the bureau about Bones' kidnapping. If that's the case, I want to know who he's getting his information from. If he's lying, his phone records will confirm that."

"I'll have to tell the judge that it's an internal FBI investigation," Caroline replied. "I'll have to stipulate to limiting the records we pull to the last twenty-four hours."

"That's fine, Caroline," Booth agreed. "It will give us enough to know if he's telling the truth or not."

"I'll get back with you as soon as I can," Caroline told him.

"Thanks, Caroline."

Booth closed his phone and moved over to the couch. He sat down with a weary sigh and leaned his head against the back of the couch. He closed his eyes and immediately saw her face…her tear-stained, dirt-streaked face as she just stared at him with a smile on her face after he'd pulled her out of the ground. Everything in him had wanted to wrap her in his arms and kiss her senseless then, but he'd held back. He'd continued to hold back until that fateful day in her office when Caroline's puckishness had given him a taste of what he'd been denying himself. After that, holding back from her was a constant struggle…a test of his willpower. He'd gotten a taste of heaven and while he knew he'd never deserve her, suddenly everything in him longed to have her.

The image in his mind changed then…remembering her how she'd looked that Christmas Eve. She had donned a pair of his flannel pajamas and sat curled up with him on his couch. While the pajamas were huge and completely engulfed her small frame, seeing her in them had ignited a fierce tenderness within him. He still didn't deserve her, but for whatever reason, she wanted him in her life. He thanked God every day for that, because he was quite certain that he wouldn't survive without her in his.

He opened his eyes and rested his elbows on his knees as he leaned forward. "She might not believe in You," he whispered in prayer, "But I do. Please give us wisdom to find her. We won't survive this without her." He sat in the stillness of her office for another minute before he pushed himself to his feet. He took a deep breath and exhaled it slowly, forcing a calmness he didn't really feel into his demeanor. Taking a quick look around her office, he spoke again. "We _will_ find you, Bones. Don't give up."

Knowing that he had to keep it together for everyone else, he rolled his shoulders to help ease the tension in them and then drew another deep breath. It was time to get back to work.

XOXOXOXOXO

T – 13:27:16

"I would like to take the money and run with this one. Leave her buried in the ground for years to come."

"It will eliminate your ability to control the others if you break your pattern."

"Special circumstances with this one though. She escaped without the ransom being paid last time. It seems only fair that she shouldn't escape if the ransom is paid this time."

"Changing your pattern will give them something to work with. It's not a good idea."

"Letting her out of the ground might not be a good idea either. It doesn't matter though. The ransom hasn't been paid yet. Perhaps they will take the decision out of my hands."

"Regardless, I'm sure you will make the correct one if the time comes."

There was a long, thoughtful pause and then, "She could be my last. I wouldn't have to worry about others then."

"Seriously?"

"I have more than enough money to disappear forever."

"But what about _Vega_?"

"What about him?"

"Have you really thought this through carefully?"

"I'm just pondering the possibilities. I still have a few hours until I have to make a decision."

"Then I trust that you know what you're doing."

"I always know what I'm doing."

XOXOXOXOXO

T – 13:15:17

Brennan sighed in frustration as she stared up at the opening in the ceiling. It still wasn't budging. She was tired and her hands hurt from beating against it as she jumped up to push against it. She shook her head and slowly lowered herself to the floor, pulling her knees up to rest her head on them. Not willing to let the desperation of the situation overwhelm her, she closed her eyes and turned her thoughts to Booth. She wondered what he was doing right now and how he was handling her disappearance.

They had never really talked about the last time, at least not about their feelings. She often wondered if he'd ever taken a good look at the evidence and found the note she had written to him. She doubted it. He would have confronted her if he had. He would've demanded explanations and she would have given them to him.

Angela had confided in her shortly after their rescue that Booth had been like a man possessed while she'd been missing. He'd refused to let any of them give up hope, even when logic told them that she and Hodgins were out of time. Angela said she'd never seen anyone move as fast as Booth when he saw that puff of dirt. As much as she'd wanted to believe her, Brennan had doubted Angela's claims that Booth was crazy about her then. He was still with Cam at the time and other than crashing on her couch for the next couple of nights to make sure she was okay, things between them were the same as when she went into the ground.

At least, that's the way things appeared. Admitting how she felt about him…even if it was in a note he would probably never read…had changed things for her. Hodgins was right. What she had in Booth was faith. Coming to grips with that had inevitably led her to recognize that she was in love with him. When she stuck her hand through the windshield and started digging her way to the surface, she _knew_ that he would be up there to help pull her through.

As soon as he'd helped pull Hodgins to safety, he'd returned to her side. The smile on his face mirrored the one on hers and she'd wished with everything in her that she had the right to lean over and press her lips to his in the same way Angela kissed Hodgins. She'd settled for a hug instead, allowing herself to draw from his strength even as she felt him do the same from her. They were partners. Even more so now. He wouldn't give up then and she knew he wouldn't give up now either. It was reason enough for her to keep fighting.

"I love you, Booth," she whispered into the silence.

XOXOXOXOXO

T: - 13:00:59

Hodgins stepped into Angela's office carrying two cups of coffee. He held one out to her as he sat down beside her on the couch.

"Thank you," she said as she took a sip of the strong brew.

"Any luck?" he asked as he leaned back into the couch.

Angela shook her head and sat down the photos she'd been looking at. She shifted slightly to face him and then relaxed into the couch. "I have looked at every single vehicle that left the hotel garage today and there isn't a single one with a bumper sticker that matches the one Bren found in your wound two years ago."

Hodgins took a sip of his own coffee and leaned his head back. "I hate this."

"Me, too."

"Every time I reach another dead end with the evidence, it takes me back to that car," Hodgins confided. "I remember how scared I was and how Dr. Brennan refused to let me give up hope. She saved my life that day. Not only with the leg thing, but in her belief that you guys would find us. I'm pretty sure if I'd been buried by myself that the fear would have paralyzed me."

Angela laid a hand on his arm and squeezed it gently. "If Booth hadn't been here forcing us to keep looking, I think the fear would've paralyzed me as well."

Hodgins lifted his head and looked over at her. "It was the first time I ever admitted out loud that I was in love with you."

Angela's eyes welled with tears as she gripped his arm tighter. "It was the first time I let myself even consider the possibility that I was in love with you."

Hodgins disengaged himself from her grip long enough to set both of their coffees on the table and then he pulled her into a hug. She hesitated for only a second before she wrapped her arms around him and buried her head in his shoulder, finally giving free reign to the tears she'd been fighting all day.

He held her while she cried, his hand making smoothing circles on her back as his own tears fell silently down his face. "We'll find her, Ang."

"And if we don't?" Angela asked.

Hodgins didn't even want to consider that possibility. The ramifications were too severe to give voice to them. "Failure isn't an option," he told her. "Booth won't let us."

Angela drew in a shuddering breath and leaned back to look at him. "Thank you, Jack."

He reached a hand up to wipe the tears from her face. "You're welcome, Ang."

She returned the gesture, wiping his own tears from his face before turning her attention back to the pile of photos strewn across the table. Hodgins watched her for just a moment longer before picking up his coffee and heading to the door. Her voice stopped him before he reached it.

"Jack, when this is all over, do you think maybe you and I could sit down and talk?"

He turned back to look at her and couldn't help a small smile. "I'd like that, Ang."

"Me, too."

"Okay then," he agreed and then continued on his way out of her office.

XOXOXOXOXO


	6. Chapter 5

_I hope that you are all still enjoying the story. I try to reply to every review, but I might have missed a couple. If so, my apologies. It wasn't intentional._

_Enough of that...on with the story._

* * *

T: - 12:15:18

Booth paced the length of the conference room as he talked on his cell phone. Sweets studiously ignored him as he made his way through Vega's service record while Cam listened intently.

"Is it enough to get us a warrant or at least to set up surveillance?" Booth asked.

"Caroline is already working on it," Cullen replied.

"Any luck with the account number yet?" Booth asked.

"We're working our way through the fourth level of dummy corporations now," Cullen replied.

"Her publisher's accountant called a few minutes ago," Booth told him. "The money is in place."

"How long are you going to hold off paying it?" Cullen asked.

"They want to wire it as soon as possible," Booth replied.

"Let me know ahead of time so we can try to follow it," Cullen told him.

"I will. Let me know what Caroline says."

"Okay."

Booth closed his phone and met Cam's questioning gaze. "Vega's phone records confirm that he received a text message from the same prepaid cell phone as the delivery boy. Caroline is trying to use that as probable cause for a search warrant. At the very least, it should get us permission to set up listening devices."

Sweets looked up from the file then. "Agent Booth, do you know why Vega left the Bureau?"

Booth looked over at him. "According to Vega, he got tired of following FBI protocol in kidnapping situations about not paying ransoms."

Sweets nodded at the folder. "His record shows that one of the last cases he worked was an eight year old boy who was abducted from an arcade in Georgetown. The FBI was called in and they negotiated the ransom down from two million to one million, convincing the kidnappers that there was no way to liquidate that kind of money within the deadline. When it came time for the exchange, the parents allowed the FBI to trace the money. The boy was found dead the following day. The kidnappers were caught and convicted, but Vega handed in his badge the following week."

Booth walked over to read the file over Sweets' shoulder. "They let him resign without making him go through the mandatory psychological evaluations?"

"There's a note that he was seeking treatment at a private facility."

"Is there any way to verify that he actually did?"

"Not without a warrant," Sweets replied. "And this is all pretty circumstantial right now."

Booth let out a curse. "I am so sick of circumstantial evidence. There has got to be something concrete on this guy. Nobody is that good."

Hodgins opened the door and stepped inside with Angela right on his heels. "Check this out, Booth."

Booth turned his attention to them and Angela handed him a photograph. "I didn't come up with anything from the garage photos, so I started looking at the lobby footage instead. Check this one out."

Booth took the photo from her and looked at the image. "What am I looking at, Angela?"

"The trunk on that luggage cart, Booth."

Booth looked closer at the photo as Cam and Sweets both moved to look over his shoulders. Booth lifted his gaze to Hodgins. "You think this could be the same trunk he uses to transport his victims?"

"It's impossible to say for sure, but it's large enough and it appears to be made of aluminum," Hodgins replied.

Booth looked at the photo again. "I don't suppose you've got a clear shot of this guy's face?"

"No," Angela replied. "He made sure to keep his face turned away from the camera and the hood pulled down would undoubtedly obscure his features anyway."

Booth looked back at Hodgins as he handed the picture to Cam. "Is there any way to confirm this is the trunk we're looking for without having the actual trunk?"

"Trace samples from the luggage cart should allow me to confirm the type of aluminum," he replied.

"I'll get a forensics team over to the hotel ASAP."

"Have them get samples from the wheels as well," Hodgins said as Booth pulled out his phone and dialed. "We can check them against the dirt particle we found by Dr. Brennan's car to confirm that the cart was in the garage."

Booth quickly relayed the information to the forensics team, instructing them to bring everything straight to the Jeffersonian. "Good work, Angela."

XOXOXOXOXO

Booth stepped into Brennan's office and closed the door. He then pulled out his phone and called Max. "How are things going, Max?"

"I'm camped out down the street from his house," Max replied. "After your meeting earlier, he picked Janine up from her office and then stopped to pick up take-out on their way back here. Nothing unusual since then."

"Did your friend find anything interesting earlier?" Booth asked.

"An oddity in the master bedroom," Max replied. "It might have been a built-in hiding area. He couldn't tell without opening it and he didn't do that because he was only doing reconnaissance."

"What about cars in the garage?" Booth asked.

"Just the one he was driving earlier," Max replied. "I saw that myself when he pulled into the garage."

"Call me if he leaves again tonight," Booth said.

"I will," Max replied. "Have you come up with anything on your end?"

"We're tracking down a couple of leads right now, but nothing concrete yet," Booth confirmed. "Caroline is still working on getting us a search warrant."

"Keep doing what you do best, Booth."

"You, too."

XOXOXOXOXO

T: - 10:01:00

Brennan glanced at the readout on the clock and then closed her eyes. If she was correct in assuming that she'd been taken directly from the hotel, and those details were still a little fuzzy in her mind, then she figured it was close to midnight. She wondered what Booth was doing and how he was holding up under the circumstances.

Knowing there was nothing she could do other than wait for Booth to find her, she allowed her mind to drift to thoughts of him. This was not how they were supposed to spend tonight. He had a meeting this morning that he had to attend and then he was supposed to join her at the Jeffersonian. The plan was to tell Angela, Hodgins and Cam about the change in their relationship this afternoon. She assumed that they would all go out for dinner after work to celebrate. After that, she had anticipated spending an intimate evening at her place with Booth.

It still amazed her at times when they were alone together and he would pull her into his arms and just hold her. She had never thought of herself as a cuddler before becoming involved with Booth. After the first time they made love, he had pulled her into his embrace and just held her until they had both finally drifted off to sleep. In spite of the fact that she'd had numerous other lovers, she'd never allowed any of them the intimacy of holding her while she slept. The truth is that she had never trusted anyone as completely as she trusted Booth.

Hodgins had accused her two years earlier of having faith in Booth. While she had argued the point at the time, looking back now, she realized that he had been right. Even then, she had complete faith in Booth's ability to find them. Despite all rational thought to the contrary, she just knew that Booth wouldn't give up until he found them. The progression of their relationship to lovers had only deepened that conviction. Booth would find her. And when he did, they would catch this bastard before he could do this to somebody else.

XOXOXOXOXO

T: - 9:15:17

Booth was silently pacing the area outside of Brennan's office while he waited on something to happen. Hodgins was comparing the soil sample found beside Brennan's car to a sample from the luggage cart at the hotel; the forensics team was running fingerprints taken from the luggage carts through the FBI database hoping for a hit; Charlie was in the surveillance van outside of Vega's house heading up the official stakeout; and Cullen was making sure they didn't lose track of the ransom that they'd wired to the off-shore account thirty minutes ago. Meanwhile, Booth was slowly going crazy with the waiting.

He'd pulled Max off of Vega's tail as soon as the warrant had been issued to set up official surveillance, and Max had called shortly after that to say that Janine had caught a cab from Vega's place so he was going to keep an eye on her while the surveillance team watched Vega. Booth wasn't sure it was necessary, but he didn't try to dissuade him. At least one of them had something to do to keep from going crazy with the waiting.

"I got it!" Hodgins called out.

Booth hurried over to where Hodgins was working. "What do you have?" he asked.

"A definite match on soil samples," Hodgins confirmed. "This soil is the exact same as what we found by Dr. Brennan's car."

"Which one?" Booth asked as he pulled out his phone and called Cullen.

"The one marked number seven," Hodgins replied.

"Have the forensics team focus their fingerprint search to cart number seven," Booth told Cullen as soon as he answered. "The soil on the wheels is a definite match to what we found by Bones' car."

Hodgins pulled up another screen on his computer and said, "We've got a match on the aluminum as well, Booth."

"We've also got a match on the aluminum from the trunk on the cart with the traces found in previous cases," Booth relayed. "Any luck with the money?"

"We're still tracking it," Cullen replied. "Any word on her location yet?"

"No," Booth replied.

"Hang in there, Booth."

"I am, Sir."

Booth disconnected the call and looked at Hodgins. "Can you get me anything else from the aluminum or soil?"

"I'm still working on it," Hodgins replied. "As soon as I know something, you'll know it."

"Thanks, Hodgins."

Hodgins looked around to make sure nobody was in earshot and then he replied, "She won't give up on you, Booth."

"I know," Booth replied.

"Good," Hodgins replied. "So don't let yourself give up on you either."

Booth looked up and met his gaze with a brief nod. "Thank you, Hodgins."

Booth turned and headed towards Angela's office. Now that he had confirmation on the cart being used in the abduction, he needed Angela to work magic and get him a face of who had used it.

XOXOXOXOXO


	7. Chapter 6

_I'm sorry for the delay in getting this next chapter posted. Life has been more than a little crazy lately._

* * *

Booth knocked sharply on Angela's doorframe as he stepped into her office. "We've got a definite match on the luggage cart, Angela."

Angela looked up from her computer screen and smiled at him. "That's great, Booth."

"What have you got for me?" he asked as he paced in front of her. "Please tell me you were able to find at least one camera angle that got a shot at this guy's face."

Angela shook her head. "I've been over every angle of the video footage, Booth. There's nothing there. I've tried everything I know to do, but there just isn't a good enough shot of his face for any of the photo recognition programs."

Booth let out a small growl of frustration. "Dammit, Angela! I need more than that."

Angela narrowed her eyes and got to her feet. "Sit down, Booth."

"I don't have time to sit down, Angela."

Angela stepped in front of him, forcing him to stop pacing and repeated herself. "Sit."

He started to argue, but the look in her eyes silenced him before the words formed. He'd never seen Angela look so forceful before. With a shake of his head, he dropped to her couch and watched as she settled herself beside him.

"You need to take a deep breath, Booth."

"I have less than nine hours to find her, Angela."

"I know that, Booth. We're all very much aware of that. But Bren needs you to keep it together and you're coming dangerously close to losing it."

Booth sighed and looked down at his hands. "I can't take a deep breath, Angela," he finally admitted. "I feel like someone is sitting on my chest, slowly crushing me."

Angela reached out and placed a hand on his forearm, gently squeezing it. "I understand, sweetie."

"Do you?" he asked as his eyes shot up to meet hers. At her silence, he continued, "Do you really know what it's like to love someone so much that your survival depends upon theirs? Do you know what it's like to draw each and every breath for the sole purpose of spending another moment with them? Do you really understand, Ang.?"

Her eyes watered as his words washed over her and she slowly shook her head. "No, maybe I don't, Booth. But I do know what it's like to love Brennan. I've loved her for a lot of years. And I plan on loving her for a lot more."

Booth's expression softened and he reached up and wrapped an arm around her shoulders. "So do I, Angela."

"I'm sorry I don't have anything else for you."

"It's okay," he assured her. "We'll still find her."

Booth got to his feet and headed to the door, but stopped and turned back to look at Angela. "She loves you too, Angela."

Angela gave him a watery smile. "I know. But she loves you more."

Booth managed a small smile of his own before he turned and headed back into the lab. They were going to have to find this guy soon.

XOXOXOXOXO

T: - 8:45:10

Max drummed his fingers on the steering wheel as he sat outside of Janine's house. Something was bothering him about this situation and he couldn't quite put his finger on it. He both trusted and respected Booth - something he rarely allowed himself to do with anyone - but he couldn't shake the feeling that they were missing something obvious.

Max had known for a few weeks that Booth and his daughter had stopped being "just partners" but he'd respected their privacy and not mentioned it, knowing that they were being careful to keep their new relationship private. He'd also known that Temperance had planned to spend the weekend working on her book because she'd turned down his invitation to visit Russ and Amy with him, telling him that she was hiding out in a hotel for the weekend to make sure she finished it.

While he was quite certain that Temperance would've told Booth where she would be spending the weekend, he knew that she hadn't mentioned it at the lab, merely telling everyone that she was hiding out for the weekend to work on her book. For her to have been abducted from the hotel would mean that someone had to know where she was going to be staying far enough in advance to make arrangements to take her.

Max picked up his phone and called Booth.

"Yeah, Max?" Booth said.

"How long had Tempe been planning on spending the weekend at that hotel?" Max asked him.

"She told me on Wednesday," Booth replied.

"Do you know if she told anyone else she was staying there?" Max asked.

"Not that I know of," Booth replied. "She didn't tell me which hotel she was at until after she was already checked in Friday evening. Only that she was checking into a hotel to work on her book."

"Somebody had to know she was going to be there, Booth," Max said. "Can you check with the hotel and find out when the room was booked? Find out who took the reservation?"

"I'll call you back."

Max closed the phone with a sigh. He hated this. It was so much easier to protect his kids when he wasn't trying to stay within the confines of the law.

He picked his cell phone back up and placed another call. He didn't waste time with pleasantries once the caller answered. "It's Max. I need a favor."

XOXOXOXOXO

T: - 8:20:10

Booth walked up the stairs to the lounge where the rest of the team had assembled. They all looked as worn out as he felt, but he was relieved to find that all of them still looked as determined to find Bones as when they'd started.

"I just got off the phone with the hotel manager," Booth told them as he accepted a cup of coffee from Cam. "The room was reserved by Bones' publisher on Tuesday. It was paid for with a company credit card."

"Did Allyson make the reservation herself or one of the secretaries?" Cam asked.

"Someone named Julie Harston," Booth replied. "I have someone picking her up now."

Angela looked up at the clock and smiled. "I'm sure she's going to love that."

Booth merely shrugged. "I'm heading over to the Hoover building for a while. Call me if anything comes up."

"Keep us posted, Booth," Hodgins called after him as he headed back down the stairs.

Booth lifted a hand in acknowledgment as he dialed Max. "Her publisher made the arrangements, Max. We're bringing the secretary in now to talk to her."

"I'm checking into something on my end as well, Booth."

"I'm sure I don't want to know what it is," Booth replied. "Call me if you need any help."

XOXOXOXOXO

T: - 6:05:05

Booth pulled into the parking garage of the Jeffersonian and leaned his head against the steering wheel. Julie Harston had been yet another dead end. The poor girl had only been working at the publishing agency for a little over a month and made absolutely certain that she shredded all information regarding Bones' itinerary after e-mailing it to Bones and Allyson. He was down to six hours and was no closer to finding her than he'd been eighteen hours earlier.

Drawing a deep breath, Booth straightened his shoulders and got out of the car. Caroline had finally gotten the warrant for Vega's phone records for the last few months and he needed to check to see if he'd had any other contact with the Grave Digger.

Booth slowed as he approached the elevator, the hair on his neck suddenly standing on end. His hand automatically moved to his gun as he scanned the area. He was just about to turn back to the elevator when he saw a movement out of the corner of his eye. He drew his gun as a man stepped out of the shadows.

"Are you Booth?" the man asked.

"Who wants to know?" Booth replied as he trained the gun on him.

"We have a mutual friend," the man replied. "He thought you might want to see this."

Booth glanced down at what appeared to be a piece of paper that had been shredded and taped back together. It was secured in a plastic covering to prevent damage and Booth noted that the man was wearing gloves to prevent fingerprints. He holstered his gun and took the paper from him. "Where did you get this?"

"It's probably better that you don't know the answer to that," the man replied. "But I hope it helps you find Dr. Brennan."

Booth looked back at the paper in his hand and realized that it was a copy of Bones' itinerary. He quickly scanned the entire page and saw the name of the hotel as well as her check-in time. When he looked back up to ask another question, the man was gone. Suspecting that the man was a friend of Max's and knowing that he wouldn't find him if he didn't want to be found, Booth turned back to the elevator and pressed the call button. He needed to look at this new evidence a little closer.

XOXOXOXOXO

* * *

_I know this one was a little short, but hopefully I'll have the next part up in the next few days. In the meantime, feel free to leave me a review to let me know what you think of it so far._


	8. Chapter 7

_I apologize that it's been so long since I posted anything on this story. I could give you all the details of how crazy my life has been, but I know you'd rather just read the story. So a quick thank you to Harleyzgirl and blc for the encouraging notes and then on to the story. _

* * *

T: - 5:47:16

Brennan laid in the darkness and stared at the ceiling. She'd decided to compose a mental list of things to do when Booth found her, because it saddened her to think of all the things she'd be leaving undone if he didn't find her in time. At the top of that list was to tell Booth that in spite of her misgivings on bringing a child into the world, she wanted to have a family with him. Not to mention that despite her statements to the contrary, she truly believed that she wanted to marry him some day. Maybe not right away, but she didn't want him to think that she was still opposed to the idea of marriage.

It amazed her how much loving him had opened her to so many possibilities that she had deemed unattainable or just not meant for her. For the first time in her adult life, she understood what it meant to truly be loved.

Next on that list of things to do was to truly allow her father the opportunity to be a part of her life again. Yes, there was always the possibility that he would once again abandon her, but these last few months with Booth had shown her that sometimes love was worth taking that chance. She knew that things would never be like they were before her parents' disappearance, but she didn't want to miss out on the opportunity to be a family again because she was too busy holding on to the past.

Once that was taken care of, she was going to sit down with Angela and ask her friend if she was truly happy being with Roxy. Things hadn't been the same in the lab since she and Jack had called off the wedding and as disruptive as their courtship had been, it was downright depressing to see the way the two of them danced around each other now and pretended everything was okay.

If Angela was truly happy, she would give her blessing on her relationship with Roxy. However, she had never seen that spark in Angela's eyes when she talked about Roxy that she had seen when she talked about being in love with Jack. If there was even the slightest possibility that there was still a spark for Jack in her friend's heart, she was going to encourage her to talk to Jack and see if they could work out their differences.

If she could possibly help her oldest friend to be even remotely as close to happy as she was with Booth, it would be worth breaking her own policy of meddling in other people's private lives. Besides, the lab could use some livening up now that Zack wasn't around to challenge Hodgins on a daily basis.

Brennan sighed and closed her eyes. She missed Zach. His betrayal had nearly been her undoing, but it didn't change the fact that she felt like she'd lost a part of herself when she lost him. She had invested more of herself in him than she'd ever done with another student. It wasn't just the time and energy spent on his education, but the emotional investment she'd made in seeing him succeed. It was hard to walk away from that, but it was time to move on. She owed it to the rest of the team to quit clinging to what had been with Zach and to move on to what would be next.

After her rescue, she would talk to Cam about offering Wendell the full-time internship in the lab. He was a good student and seemed to fit well with the team. Not only that, but Booth seemed to have taken him under his wing. Yes, Wendell would definitely be a good choice.

Brennan opened her eyes again as her thoughts once again drifted to Booth. She lifted her hand to her neck, her fingers finding the spot where she knew he had marked her that morning. "It'll be different this time, Booth," she whispered. "I don't care who sees us, I'm not holding back from kissing you when you pull me out of the ground this time."

XOXOXOXOXO

T: - 5:30:09

Booth was carefully checking Vega's phone records, cross-referencing incoming calls to numbers the Grave Digger had used in previous abductions. Each phone call to the families had been attributed to a pre-paid, disposable cell phone. The number was different each time and there was never a second ransom call made. If the ransom was paid, a text message was sent with GPS locations. If it wasn't paid, no other contact was made. By listing each number used to make the ransom call, Booth was hoping to find at least one more call to Vega's phone that they could use to get a warrant to search his house.

Booth straightened up and rubbed his hand across his eyes, willing his vision to clear. He was physically tired and emotionally drained and the numbers were starting to run together. He'd given Cam the copy of the itinerary as soon as he'd reached the lab and as soon as she finished checking for fingerprints, Angela was going to scan it and see if she could lift anything useful from the paper. In the mean time, he'd taken on the task of cross-referencing phone numbers himself.

"Do you want some coffee?" Hodgins asked as he opened the conference room door and stuck his head in.

"That would be great," Booth replied as he looked up to meet his gaze.

When the door slipped shut again, Booth rolled his neck and then turned his attention back to the papers in front of him. He used a ruler to keep the lines on the page straight and then carefully began working his way backward through the pages. There was a connection here. He _knew _there was. He just had to find it.

He heard the door open again and smelled the strong aroma of fresh coffee as Hodgins sat a steaming cup in front of him. Without looking up, he offered his thanks and continued with his task. Time was running out.

XOXOXOXOXO

T: - 4:58:17

Booth looked up from the papers spread in front of him when Cam opened the door. "Angela might have something, Booth," she said as Angela followed her into the room.

"What it is, Angela?" Booth asked.

"There was a second piece of paper with the itinerary your mystery friend gave us," Angela said. "It wasn't in nearly as good of shape as the itinerary, so it took a little work to find out what we had." She handed him a sheet of paper ensconced in plastic. "It's a fax confirmation sheet. Apparently, whoever got their hands on this itinerary taped it back together and then faxed it to someone else."

Booth carefully examined the paper as Angela continued. "It has a time and date stamp as well as the number it was faxed to."

Booth glanced down at the phone records in front of him and a smile broke out on his face. "This is Vega's home number," he said as he looked back up at them. "We've finally got a link. Somebody got their hands on Bones' itinerary and faxed it to Vega's home." He shuffled through the phone records until he found the correct date and then lifted the page. He searched through the numbers until he found the same time and then highlighted the incoming number. "I'll get Charlie to track down where the fax was sent from and then have Caroline get a warrant," he said as he got to his feet.

"Where are you going?" Cam asked as he headed for the door.

"I'm going to go wake Vega up and bring him to the Hoover for questioning," Booth replied. "I'm very interested in hearing his explanation on this one."

"I'm coming with you," Cam stated as she followed him out the door. Booth stopped and turned to look at her, but before he could protest, she shook her head. "Don't argue with me, Seeley. I'm covering your back on this one."

Booth leveled his gaze at her. "You're afraid I'm going to go in guns blazing."

Cam met his gaze head on. "Don't tell me that the thought hasn't crossed your mind."

"He's no good to me dead, Cam," Booth replied as he turned around and started out of the lab. "At least not until he tells me where to find Bones."

"And that's why I'm going with you," she said as she caught up with him again.

"Fine," he said as he pulled his phone out and dialed Charlie's number to give him the fax number he needed tracked down.

XOXOXOXOXO

T: - 3:30:15

Bright sunlight streamed through the opening in the top of the container causing Brennan to blink repeatedly as her eyes tried to adjust to the sudden light after being in darkness for so long.

"Bones?" Booth called from the opening.

Tears streamed down her face as she struggled to her feet. "Booth."

In an instant, he dropped down into the container with her. "Bones!"

She was in his arms then, her tears soaking the front of his shirt where he cradled her head to his chest. "Oh Booth, I knew you would find me."

"It's okay, baby," he whispered into her ear as he rocked her in his arms, his hands running soothingly up and down her back. "I'm here. You're okay."

"I love you so much," she sobbed.

"I love you, too," he replied.

She pulled back to look up at his face, the sunlight from above giving him an angelic glow. "I knew you'd come, Booth."

"Always," he replied. "Always." He lifted his hands to cradle her face in them and then slowly leaned down to brush his lips against hers. She closed her eyes in anticipation of the sweetness of his kiss and in that instant, he was ripped from her arms.

Brennan jolted awake, sitting straight up in the darkness. A scream tore from her throat before she could stop it. She was still trapped. It had only been a dream. Tears flowed down her face, the relief she'd felt in her dream rapidly transformed into anguish. She leaned back against the wall and drew several deep breaths to get herself back under control.

She wiped the tears from her face and glanced down at the clock. Three-and-a-half hours still. Plenty of time for Booth to rescue her. He would find her and then he really would hold her in his arms and tell her that he loved her.

Booth would find her.

XOXOXOXOXO

_

* * *

_

I hope to have more for you guys soon.


	9. Chapter 8

_Yes, I know it has been forever since I posted anything on this story. I haven't forgotten about it though. In fact, I might even be close to figuring out who the bad guy is. I am leaving for vacation tomorrow though, so I make no promises as to getting another part posted before then. _

* * *

T: - 3:03:07

Sweets and Cam watched through the one-way mirror as Booth sat down across from Vega in the interrogation room. As much as they both wanted to be in there with him, they knew he was an intimidating presence when others weren't around.

"I'm not sure why you felt it necessary to drag me out of bed at 5:30, Agent Booth," Vega stated. "I already offered my full cooperation and you were quite adamant in your refusal."

"I'm not looking for cooperation, Vega," Booth replied as he opened the folder he'd carried in with him. "I'm looking for answers."

"Answers to what?" Vega asked.

Booth looked down at the file in his hands and then met Vega's gaze again. "Tell me about Cole Johnson."

Vega's jaw clenched and his face reddened. "Leave that little boy out of this, Booth."

"Isn't he the reason you left the Bureau, Vega?"

"You have no idea what you're talking about," Vega replied.

"Then why don't you tell me?" Booth asked. "You're so anxious to jump into my case, why don't we jump into your last one instead? Tell me what went wrong with it."

"Everything went wrong," Vega replied icily. "Stupid Bureau policies got that little boy killed. If we had simply followed the demands the kidnappers gave, he would still be alive."

"Do you honestly believe that?" Booth asked. "Even after the family paid the ransom, they killed him. What makes you think it would've ended differently?"

When Vega merely stared at him, Booth slid a piece of paper across the table. "Okay, you wanted involved in the investigation into Dr. Brennan's kidnapping, you're involved now. Tell me what you know about this."

Vega picked up the paper and read through it quickly. "It looks to me like a copy of Dr. Brennan's itinerary for the weekend before she was abducted."

"I already know what it is," Booth replied. "What I want you to tell me is who faxed it to you and why."

"I have no idea what you're talking about, Agent Booth," Vega replied. "I've never seen this before."

Booth slammed both palms onto the table and leaned across it. "Don't lie to me, Vega. I've already got the phone records that prove it was faxed to your house as well as the fact that the text message you received came from the Grave Digger, not a source in the FBI. Now, if you have any intentions of walking out of this room a free man, then I strongly suggest that you start talking."

Vega glanced once more at the piece of paper and then met Booth's eyes. "I swear to you that I have no idea what you're talking about. And I'm finished talking. If you want to ask more questions, I want my lawyer."

Cam and Sweets exchanged a glance as Booth stood up so quickly that his chair flew backwards into the wall and then without another word, he gathered up his things and left the room. They both turned to the door as he stepped into the observation room.

"What do you think, Sweets?" Booth asked as he stepped in and closed the door behind him.

Sweets swallowed hard and then met Booth's gaze. "He honestly believes what he's saying, Booth."

Booth lifted his gaze to the ceiling and let out a frustrated sigh before he met their gazes again. "Is it the truth?"

"I can't answer that," Sweets replied. "I can only tell you that he believes it to be truth."

"So it's possible that he's being set up?" Cam asked.

"I don't believe that," Booth said. "Every part of me that I count on in being a cop tells me that he's guilty as sin."

"Our evidence is pretty circumstantial, Booth," she reminded him.

"I know," Booth replied as he stepped over to the window and looked in on Vega. "And in keeping him here, I'm running the risk of him not being able to send us the GPS coordinates we need to find her."

"So what do you want to do?" Sweets asked.

Booth stared through the window for a long moment before he replied. "Get him a phone and let him call his lawyer. I want an explanation."

Sweets stepped out of the room to carry out Booth's orders and Booth turned to look at Cam. "I need to go see Caroline. Are you coming with me?"

"On your six, Seeley."

Booth smiled in spite of himself. Cam was still a cop at heart.

XOXOXOXOXO

T: - 2:45:19

"You know that I want to help you," Caroline said as she poured them all a cup of coffee. "We simply don't have enough to get a search warrant."

"The phone records prove that Vega got a copy of Bones' itinerary faxed to him," Booth replied. "Why isn't that enough to get us access to his house?"

"Because the judge is going to want to know where you got your hands on that piece of information and you haven't been very forthcoming with me about that."

"I told you that it was an anonymous tip," Booth said. "I don't know where it came from. All I know is that it's proof he's involved."

Caroline sighed and added more sugar to her coffee. "Trace the number back to its source and then I'll take it to the judge, Booth."

Booth bit down a growl and forced himself to remain calm. "We're running out of time, Caroline."

"I know that," she replied. "So get out of here and go get me what I need to get the warrant."

Booth started to say something else, but Cam stepped between the two. "Come on, Booth. Let's see how the trace is going on that phone number and if Vega's lawyer has shown up yet." Turning to Caroline, she added, "Thanks, Caroline. We'll call you as soon as we have the information you need."

Booth followed Cam out of the room and down the hallway without saying a word. Once they stepped into the elevator and the doors closed behind them, he turned on her. "I don't need to be handled, Cam."

Cam resisted the urge to smile as she replied, "Maybe not, but Caroline wasn't going to budge and we were just wasting our time. If she can't help us, we need to find another avenue to pursue. Wouldn't you agree?"

Booth took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "I'm out of avenues, Cam. I have no idea where to go next."

"Then do what you told Caroline you were going to do. Call Charlie and see if he's backtracked the fax number yet. We need to know where the fax was sent from in order to get a warrant."

Booth nodded in agreement and pulled out his cell phone as the elevator doors opened. Before he could dial though, his phone rang. "Booth," he said sharply by way of greeting.

"I think we've got something," Hodgins said. "You need to get to the lab ASAP, man."

"We're on our way," Booth said. As he disconnected the call, he turned to Cam. "Hodgins thinks they've found something. Let's go."

XOXOXOXOXO

T: - 2:00:45

"What am I looking at exactly?" Booth asked as he leaned over the microscope.

"In the corner of the page," Hodgins replied. "There's a bar code embedded in the paper."

"Okay, I see it," Booth replied. "How does that help us?"

"It means that this particular piece of paper has been photocopied," Hodgins replied.

Booth looked up from the microscope at that. "Explain."

"I ran the bar code and it comes back to a high end copy machine. The manufacturer embeds the bar code on every sheet of paper that runs through the machine. Basically, it means that whoever got their hands on Dr. Brennan's itinerary pieced it back together and then photocopied it before they faxed it. All we have to do is track down who owns this particular machine."

"Please tell me that you're already working on that," Booth replied.

"We know exactly which machine it is, but we're going to need a warrant to get access to customer information to know who bought it," Hodgins replied.

Booth had his cell phone out and was dialing Caroline's number before Hodgins had even finished his sentence. "Caroline, we've got something."

XOXOXOXOXO

T: - 1:17:54

Booth stood in the observation room with Cam and Sweets while Vega and his lawyer conferred in the interrogation room. He wanted to be in there already, but he was waiting for a call from Cullen before he talked to Vega again.

"What is taking so long?" Booth asked as he looked at his watch for the tenth time in the past two minutes.

"It's only been twenty minutes since Cullen called and told you that they were entering the building, Booth," Cam reminded him.

"It's a publishing company, Cam. How many copiers could they possibly have to check before they find the right one?"

"They're also looking for the fax machine," Cam reminded him. "Charlie's trace showed that the number that sent Dr. Brennan's itinerary to Vega was owned by the publishing company as well."

"Does it seem odd to anyone else that Dr. Brennan's own publishing company would somehow be involved with the Grave Digger?" Sweets asked.

"Everything about this seems odd," Cam replied.

Booth looked over at Sweets and then narrowed his eyes as something clicked inside his mind. Seeing the look in his eyes, Sweets took a step backwards and immediately began to apologize. "I didn't mean that it wasn't possible, Agent Booth. I was just thinking out loud."

Booth shook his head and then glanced over at Cam. "I need a list of everyone who works in that building, regardless of whether or not they work for Bones' publishing company."

"You think someone with access to the building could have gotten their hands on the itinerary and then sent it from inside the publishing company's offices so it wouldn't trace back to them?" Cam asked.

"We need to check," Booth said as he looked at his watch again. "We're running out of time."

Cam opened her phone and dialed Caroline's number as she stepped out of the observation room.

"Thanks, Sweets," Booth said as he looked back over at him.

Sweets offered a half grin and shrugged his shoulders, immensely relieved that the look he'd seen in Booth's eyes only moments before had not been directed at him. "You're welcome."

XOXOXOXOXO

T: - 0:45:28

"What is the nature of your relationship with Janine?" Booth asked as he stared across the table at Vega.

Vega glanced at his lawyer and then met Booth's gaze again. "I'm not sure what that has to do with Dr. Brennan's abduction, but she is just my agent."

"Nothing personal there at all?" Booth probed.

"Janine is very much involved with someone else," Vega replied.

"Tell me about him," Booth continued.

"I've never met him," Vega replied. "It's not like the two of us socialize outside of our working relationship. She has mentioned him a couple of times though and I get the impression that he's quite wealthy."

"What about you?" Booth asked.

"What about me?" Vega replied.

"Are your feelings for her strictly professional?" Booth clarified.

Vega's lawyer interrupted before Vega could respond. "Agent Booth, this is ridiculous. If you have anything connecting my client to this Grave Digger, let's hear it. Otherwise, we're finished here."

Booth nodded and slid a piece of paper across the table to Vega. "This is a copy of your cell phone records. The highlighted number is an incoming text message from the same number the Grave Digger used to contact me. According to you, you were informed by a contact within the FBI about Dr. Brennan's abduction."

The lawyer leaned over and whispered something into Vega's ear and Vega shook his head. After another comment by his lawyer, Vega turned his attention back to Booth. "I thought the text was from my contact. He usually sends me a text message from a pre-paid cell phone so it can't be traced back to him. The number was different than usual, but I figured he just had to get a new phone."

"I'm going to need a name," Booth said.

"I can't do that," Vega replied.

Booth's jaw tightened in frustration, but he merely slid another piece of paper across the table. "This is a copy of your home phone records. The highlighted number is an incoming fax. We traced it back to a fax machine in Dr. Brennan's publisher's office." He slid two other papers across the table, both of them encased in plastic to protect them. "This is the item that was faxed to your home number. As you can see, the fax confirmation sheet shows the date it was sent and that the transmission was successful."

Vega passed the papers to his lawyer who glanced at them and then looked up at Booth. "Obviously, this was a case of someone dialing an incorrect number. My client assures me that he has never seen this itinerary before."

Booth nodded his head. "You're going to have to do better than that, Vega. We're tracing the money now. When we find it in one of your accounts, you're going to jail for a very long time. We also know that Janine works in the same building as Dr. Brennan's publisher and that she had access to the office where the fax was sent. I would suggest that you start cooperating while you have the chance."

With that, Booth got to his feet and gathered up all of his papers. "I'll let you talk things over with your lawyer for a few minutes, but let me assure that my patience isn't going to last long. This is your only chance to make a deal."

Booth stepped out of the interrogation room and closed the door firmly behind him. He ran his hand through his hair and let out a sigh as he made his way to the observation room. As he opened the door, his cell phone vibrated, notifying him of a new text message. He opened the phone as he stepped into the room.

"Do you think he's going to deal?" Cam asked.

Booth ignored her as he read the text message. Noticing the color drain from his face, Cam and Sweets both stepped towards him. "What is it?"

"Latitude and longitude," Booth replied as he continued to stare at his phone in disbelief.

Cam pulled her own cell phone out and opened the GPS program as she moved to look over Booth's shoulder. She quickly punched in the co-ordinates and mapped out the most direct route. "It's over an hour away, Booth," she told him. "She's got less than forty minutes of air left. We need to get on the road now."

Booth dialed his phone as the three of them headed out of the room. "Cullen, we've got co-ordinates. Cam is sending them to you now. We're going to need a helicopter to meet us as soon as we can get one in the air. I'm on my way there now. We're going to need an ambulance as well."

"I'll call you back as soon as we can get the chopper off the ground," Cullen replied. "Was it the same number as before?"

"Yes," Booth replied. "And Vega has been in the interrogation room all morning."

"I'll be in touch," Cullen replied. "Get going."

Booth disconnected the call as they headed for the stairway, none of them patient enough to wait for the elevator. "Cam, call the lab and let Hodgins and Angela know."

"Already on it," she replied as she lifted her own phone.

Booth dialed Max's number and started speaking as soon as he picked up. "Where are you?"

"Down the street from Vega's. I followed Janine here."

"We've got co-ordinates. I'll send them to your phone if you want to meet us there."

"On my way," Max replied.

Booth ended the call and forwarded the text message to Max. They were cutting it close. They needed to get moving and now.

XOXOXOXOXO

T: - 00.05.32

Brennan watched the red glow of the numbers on the clock in front of her face. It was slowly ticking down the seconds until her air supply ran out. The bastard had left her nothing this time except for the digital clock that was now serving as a painful reminder of all the things she was leaving unfinished.

As the clock passed below the five minute mark, she closed her eyes against the tears that welled up. An image of Booth instantly filled her mind and she swallowed the anguish that threatened to pull her under. She wouldn't give up hope. She believed in him more than she'd believed in anything in her life, including her science. He would find her. He had to, because she was quite certain that if he didn't, her death would bring about his own. She would hold on for him. She had promised him that the center would hold and she would hold for as long as it took.

_

* * *

_

I think that brings us back to where we started from. Thanks for sticking with me this far, guys. I promise an ending soon. Please feel free to drop me a line. It would be nice to hear from you.


	10. Chapter 9

_I could give you a list of reasons as to why it's taken me so long to post the next part of this, but I'm sure you'd rather read the story than those. I apologize for the delay. You can thank my dear friend, Harleyzgirl, for harassing me about finishing this._

* * *

T: + 00.01.35

Booth glanced at his watch as he looked out the window of the helicopter. They were out of time. He only hoped that Bones had found a way to hold on just a little longer.

"There!" the co-pilot called out.

"Set us down now!" Booth called. "And find out how far out the ambulance is."

He didn't wait for a response, but pulled off his headset as he felt the helicopter start its descent. As soon as he felt touchdown, he opened the door and jumped out. Keeping his head low, he grabbed the shovels and ran towards the spot they had noticed from the air.

He started digging as soon as he reached the patch of ground that had obviously been recently disturbed. He heard the others join him and knew that Cam and Sweets had also picked up a shovel and started digging. The pilot and co-pilot joined them moments later and as they dug, Booth could hear the sound of another helicopter approaching. He knew it carried Cullen, Hodgins, Angela and he guessed at least a couple of their forensic agents. He didn't have time to think about that right now though. His thoughts were filled only with finding Bones.

He dug his shovel into the ground again and felt it hit something solid. "I've got something," he called to the others as he dropped to his knees and began moving the dirt aside with his hands.

Sweets was the first one to join him and the two of them managed to get enough dirt scraped away to find a handle. He turned it to disengage the lock, surprised that it wasn't more securely fastened. Taking a deep breath to steel himself, he pulled the lid open and peered down into the darkness.

"Bones?" he called.

There was no response.

"I need some light in here," he said as he maneuvered himself into the narrow opening. Before he had completely lowered himself, a large flashlight had been brought over and illuminated the area.

As soon as his feet hit the bottom, Booth saw her curled into a ball in the far corner of the container. Wasting no time, he made his way over to her and dropped to his knees.

"Bones," he whispered as his fingers searched for a pulse. "Please baby."

He found a pulse and felt relief flood through his body. "I've got a pulse," he called out. "Where the hell is the ambulance?"

"They're here, Booth," Cam replied. "Can you bring her up?"

"I'll need a buddy harness," Booth called back up. "And tell them to hurry up. Her pulse is weak and she's not responding."

He leaned closer to her then. "Bones, hang on for me. I've got you. We're getting out of here. Just hang on a little longer. Help is here now."

He looked up as one of the paramedics dropped into the container with them. He immediately hooked an oxygen mask over her face and then checked for any broken bones.

"She should be okay to move," the paramedic stated. "Let's get her over to the opening and get her into a harness to lift her out of here."

Booth easily lifted her into his arms and carried her across the small container as the paramedic carried the small oxygen tank. Within minutes, they had lifted her out of the ground and placed her on a stretcher.

"How long to the nearest hospital?" Booth asked as they headed for the ambulance.

"Fifteen minutes," came the response.

Booth reached out and grabbed the stretcher. "We take the helicopter," he stated.

"Those helicopters aren't equipped for medical emergencies," the paramedic argued.

"I don't care," Booth replied. "You ride with her and your partner can meet us there. Let's go."

The paramedic looked around for support but quickly realized he wasn't going to get any from the group that was watching the interaction. "Fine," he acquiesced. "Let's go."

XOXOXOXOXO

T: + 03.35.39

Brennan heard voices and struggled to open her eyes. She had to let them know where she was. She opened her mouth to call out for help, but knew even as the words left her mouth that there was no way anyone could hear her. She was too weak to even cry for help.

Booth turned at the mumbled "Booth" he heard from the hospital bed. Without even an apology to Max, he cut off their conversation and moved back to Brennan's side. "Shh, it's okay," Booth said as he leaned over the railing on the hospital bed. "I'm right here, Bones."

He lifted his hand to her face and gently pushed her hair back as he continued to talk to her. "You're safe, Bones. You're in the hospital."

Brennan felt relief flood her body as she finally focused her gaze on Booth. She tried to say his name again, but couldn't get the words past her lips. He smiled at her as he wiped a tear from her eyes. "It's okay. I know. You're safe now. Just rest. I'll be here when you wake up. I promise."

She closed her eyes again as he continued to smooth her hair back from her face. It was such a comforting gesture. She felt his lips brush across her forehead and tried to smile even as she felt sleep claiming her body again.

XOXOXOXOXO

T: + 08.15.16

Booth heard Brennan start to stir and quickly ended his phone conversation. "Thanks for the update, Sam. I'll call you later."

He closed his phone and moved to stand next to the bed, wanting to make sure that when Brennan opened her eyes this time, she saw his face and knew she was safe. He clasped one of her hands in his and spoke to her as she slowly worked her way from slumber.

"You're safe, Bones. I'm here. It's okay."

She opened her eyes and blinked at him before completely focusing on him. When she did, she offered him a smile as she squeezed his hand. "Booth."

"I'm here."

"I knew you'd find me," she rasped.

"And I knew you wouldn't give up," he replied as he bent down to press a kiss to her forehead.

When he started to pull away, she tightened her grip on his hand. "I want a real kiss, Booth."

He couldn't help the smile that crossed his lips before he pressed them to hers. He took his time kissing her, reveling in the taste of her. When he finally pulled away, she met his gaze with a pointed look. "That was better, but not quite as real as I wanted."

He brushed his lips against hers again before he replied, "I'm afraid they would kick me out of here if I didn't keep myself in check right now, Bones."

"I understand," she replied.

Their eyes locked then and the fear and desperation of the last twenty-four hours passed quickly between them. "I had faith in you," Brennan finally whispered.

"I had faith in you," Booth replied.

"I love you," Brennan stated. "More than I thought possible to love another human being."

"I love you, too," he replied.

"As soon as I get out of here, we need to talk about some things," she informed him.

"A good talk?" he asked.

"Definitely," she replied with a smile.

He leaned down to kiss her again and she wrapped her arms around his neck to pull him even closer. A loud squeal from the doorway had them jumping apart and Booth reaching for his gun. Brennan's hand on his arm stopped him before he could actually draw the weapon and they both looked over to find Angela practically jumping up and down in the doorway.

"I am so sorry, sweeties," she said as she made her way over to the bed. "I mean knowing you're together is one thing. Walking in on the two of you in a lip lock is something entirely different."

"It's okay, Angela," Booth said as he relaxed.

Angela leaned down to hug Brennan and continued, "I'm so glad you're okay, Bren."

"Thanks, Angela," Brennan replied as she returned her friend's hug.

"Have you brought her up to speed yet?" Angela asked as she moved to pull a chair over to the bed.

"Brought me up to speed on what?" Brennan asked as she looked over at Booth.

"I'll take that as a no," Angela commented as she settled herself in the chair.

"I wanted to take care of the important stuff first," Booth said as he met Brennan's questioning look. "I figured once I told you I love you about a hundred times, then I could move on to the other mundane things in our lives, like the status of the case."

"I'm glad you got your priorities right this time," Brennan said with a smile. She then patted the bed beside her and scooted over to make room for him. "Sit with me and hold me while you fill me in on the details."

There was no hesitation as Booth climbed into the bed next to her and situated her so she was resting against his chest. "Is that better?" he asked.

"Definitely," she replied. "So tell me how you caught him."

"What makes you so sure that we did?" Booth asked.

Brennan looked over her shoulder and smiled at him. "Because you're sitting here in the bed with me and not out chasing him," she replied. "Besides, I can't feel the tension rolling off of you like it was earlier when I was awake for a couple of minutes."

"She's got you there, Booth," Angela chimed in. "You've definitely been sending off some negative vibes for the last few hours."

Booth brushed his lips against Brennan's. "You're right. We caught him."

"Details, please," Brennan replied as she relaxed even further into his embrace.

Booth quickly told her about the ransom call and delivery of the package containing her cell phone and the scarf she'd been wearing when she'd been abducted. And between him and Angela, they were able to fill her in on all of the details of the investigation.

"I had Vega in for questioning when the co-ordinates for your location were sent to my cell phone, so I left him in the interrogation room with his lawyer while we went to find you," Booth stated. "And that's when things really got interesting."

"How so?" Brennan asked.

"As soon as I knew the co-ordinates were real, and not just a wild goose chase, I called and had them cut Vega loose. Although I wasn't convinced he had no involvement in your kidnapping, all of the evidence was circumstantial. Since he was in FBI custody when I got the text telling me where to find you, there was no way he sent it."

"But your gut wasn't convinced?" Brennan asked.

"No," Booth replied. "It wasn't. And as it turns out, my gut happened to be right this time."

"It was Vega?" Brennan asked as she turned in his arms to face him, the surprise showing on her face.

"He left the Hoover and went back to his house, which we still had under surveillance. His agent, Janine, was waiting for him there. The details of what actually transpired are still a little sketchy, but what we've been able to gather from the audio surveillance is that Janine was waiting for Vega when he got back to the house and they got into a rather loud verbal altercation. She accused him of risking everything for his personal vendetta against you and he retaliated that he had no idea what she was talking about."

"So Janine thought Vega was the Grave Digger?" Brennan asked.

"No, Janine _knew_ that Vega was the Grave Digger. The surveillance picked up a new voice entering the conversation and knew that the Grave Digger was somehow inside the house. A quick phone call secured a warrant to enter the house, but when they entered, there was only Vega and Janine."

"Split personality?" Brennan asked.

Booth grinned and shook his head. "You're jumping to the end of the story, Bones."

"Sorry," she replied. "It makes sense though."

"Yeah, it does now," Booth agreed. "When Janine confronted Vega, it forced his alter-ego to make an appearance. Since Vega was still so furious at being accused of the crime, he apparently fought to stay in control. I guess that's when he realized what Janine was saying was true. Our forensics team found a hidden compartment in the master bedroom that had quite a collection of items from all of the kidnappings we were aware of, and a couple that we weren't."

"So is he in custody?" Brennan asked.

"Sort of," he replied.

At that, she turned fully around to look at him. "What does 'sort of' mean?"

"He's at the morgue," Booth replied.

"What? How?" Brennan asked.

"Janine shot him," he replied. "Our guys entered the house and heard the gunshot."

"What was her role in all of this?" Brennan asked as she settled back against Booth's chest and pulled his arms around her waist.

"From what she's told Cullen, Vega approached her about helping with his book. She agreed and then through the course of writing the book, she realized that there were times when he would be working on the book where there seemed to be a shift in his demeanor. She decided to talk to him one day during one of those shifts and that's when she realized he had a split personality. His Grave Digger persona promised her millions of dollars and a life of luxury if she would keep quiet and help Vega, so she agreed."

Brennan felt Booth tense behind her as he continued, "When the Grave Digger kidnapped you this time, he planned to let you die in that hole. Janine tried to talk him out of it, but he said this could be his last kidnapping and then they could be rid of us and Vega and nobody would even know where to begin looking for them."

Brennan ran her hands soothingly up and down Booth's arms. "Why did she send the co-ordinates?"

"She knew that Booth would track them down and kill them," Angela offered.

"When I brought Vega in for questioning, she thought I'd already figured things out," Booth added. "She hoped the text would buy enough time to get Vega out of jail so she could convince the Grave Digger to cut losses and run."

"It probably would've worked if Vega hadn't secretly been in love with Janine," Angela added.

Brennan turned her head to look at Booth form confirmation. "Sweets seems to think that it was Vega's love for Janine that made him fight to stay in control at the house and not let the Grave Digger take over. Unfortunately for him, it cost him his life."

"You don't sound too broken up by it," Brennan commented.

"I would've killed him myself if I'd had the opportunity," Booth replied forcefully.

Brennan looked at him for a long moment, seeing the truth of his statement in his eyes. "I love you, too."

Booth leaned down and brushed a kiss across her lips and then settled her back against his chest. "Enough about that, let's talk about something more cheerful for a while."

He looked pointedly at Angela who shook her head slightly. "It's not official, Booth."

Brennan lifted her eyebrows and turned her head to look between the two. "What's not official?"

"Tell her, Angela."

Brennan looked back at Angela expectantly. "Yes, tell me."

"I ended things with Roxy," Angela replied. "Jack and I have agreed to talk…about things."

Brennan smiled and reached a hand towards her, pulling her up until she could hug her. "I'm happy for you, Angela. You deserve to be happy and Jack does that for you. Don't let it slip away."

"I don't plan on it," Angela replied as tears filled her eyes. "I've decided that some things are worth fighting for."

"Yes, they are," Brennan replied as she leaned back into Booth's embrace again.

Angela smiled down at them for a minute before she started laughing. "Nice hickey, Bren."

Brennan's hand immediately went to the spot on her neck where Booth had left his mark. Instead of the embarrassment she expected to feel, she only felt a sense of belonging. "Yeah, I keep telling him to leave them in places nobody else is going to see, but you know Booth."

Angela's gaze drifted over to Booth's and they shared a smile. "Yeah, I do."

XOXOXOXOXO

* * *

_Please feel free to drop me a line. I'd love to hear from you. _


	11. Epilogue

_I figured I made you guys wait long enough for the resolution of this story, that I owed you the epilogue ASAP. Thanks for hanging with me on this one. _

* * *

T: + 6 months

"Hello there, Beautiful," Booth said as he wrapped his arms around Brennan and pulled her back into his embrace.

"Hello yourself, Handsome," she replied as she settled against his chest and enjoyed the warmth of his body.

"It was a beautiful ceremony," Booth commented.

"Indeed," Brennan agreed as they looked out at the wedding guests who were enjoying the food and alcohol that had been served. "I'm just glad that they went through with it this time and didn't leave us standing at the altar again."

"The results would've been different this time if they had," he assured her as his gaze drifted to where Jack and Angela were sharing their first dance as husband and wife.

"Oh yeah?" she asked as she looked over her shoulder at him.

"Absolutely," he replied as he met her gaze. "If they'd left us standing at the altar this time, I would've moved up the time table on our own wedding and we'd be the ones out there sharing our first dance as husband and wife."

"You're quite sure of yourself there, Booth," she replied as she turned her attention back to the wedding guests. She saw Wendell laugh at some story her father was telling him and couldn't help but smile.

"It's not me that I'm so sure of," Booth replied as he turned her to face him. "It's you and me together that I have complete confidence in."

She smiled as she wrapped her arms around his neck. "When do you want to tell them?"

"Not today," Booth replied as he settled his arms around her waist. "Today is about Jack and Angela. We can tell them about the baby after they get back from the honeymoon."

"Agreed," Brennan said. "But I want to tell my father first."

Booth smiled as he looked over her shoulder at where Max was seated with the rest of his squint squad. "Deal," he said.

"I love you, Booth."

"I love you, too."

The two leaned towards each other, meeting halfway, as they shared a passionate kiss, knowing that second chances should never be taken for granted.

* * *

_And that brings us to an end. I hope you enjoyed it. Please drop me a line and let me know what you thought. And thanks so much for taking the time to read it._


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